Vanity box or case



Jan- 28, 1941- w. H. MAcHlN E1- AL 2,230,202

VANITY BOX OR CASE Filed Sept. 5, 1958 INVENToRs I Willis H.Maehm. ReneL.E.Reutez-. Orian L. Holman 'i ATToRN Patented Jan. 28, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE VANITY BOX 0R CASE Application September 3, 1938, Serial No. 228,420

3 Claims.

This invention relates to certain improvements in vanity boxes or cases and particularly to a construction where a body made of plastic material is employed, and the cover lid and other associated parts are made of metal.

One of the objects of this invention is to provide means to facilitate the attachmentof the metal parts by snap locking engagement to the plastic body, without any subsequent assembly operations.

A further object is to provide a vanity box of the above nature in which certain novel features reside in the interengagement of the metal cover with the plastic base and specifically in a construction having three sides of the metal cover designed to shut within three upstanding boundary walls of the body and the remaining side carried over the rear edge of the body and hinged thereto. The three body Walls represent the full height of the box and have their top surfaces disposed on a plane common with the top surface of the metal cover. y

A further object resides in the particular construction of the spring catch for closing the cover and in means for holding the cover in a predetermined open position.

With these objects in view and others not specifically referred to, the invention consists in certain novel parts, arrangements and combinations which will be described in connection with the accompanying drawing and the novel features pointed out in the claims hereunto appended.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the vanity box constructed in accordance with the present invention, as it appears in open position.

Fig. 2 is a vertical section through substantially the central section of the box, the view taken along the line 2--2 of Fig. 1 and showing the cover in partly opened position.

Fig. 3 is a similar view through another portion of the box taken along the line 3-3 of Fig. 1, showing the cover in completely closed position.

Fig. 4 is a view of the same section as Fig. 3 but showing the'metal parts as they appear in the state of being assembled into the plastic body.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary plan view of the front portion of the body for amplifying the spring catch construction.

Figs. 6 and '1v are top plan views of the plastic base and compartment shell respectively, the

latter adapted to be assembled into the plastic base.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged vertical view through theV rear end of the plastic body to show in detail the hinge recess groove.

Referring now to the drawing in which like numerals designate like parts throughout the several views, the numeral I0 refers generally to a body which in this case is preferably made of plastic moldable composition having a front wall II and two sidewalls I2 and I3 extended to the full height of the box with a rear wall It extended to substantially less than the height of the other sides.

The front surface of the front wall Il is preferably made flat while the surfaces of the two sidewalls I2 and I3 are curved on the radius of a circle as is also the surface of the one-half rear wall I4.

The four walls II, I2, I3 and I4 define a hollow chamber I5 within which is inserted a compartment shell I6 having two wells I1 and I8 for loose powder and rouge respectively. The two wells I1 and I8 are divided by a partition I9 to which is hinged a cover lid 20 by a suitable hinged construction 2I. -The cover lid 20 is preferably dished to accommodate a powder puff not shown and serves to cover the loose powder well Il. The cover lid may be releasably held ln locked position by a detent catch 22 of the usual construction projecting through a suitable opening 22a in the adjacent flange portion of a compartment shell I6.

The body III of the vanity box is closed by a flat top cover 23 having a front 24 and two perpendicular depending sidewalls 24, 25. When the cover 23 is closed into the body I0 the walls 24 and 25, 25 lie within the confines of the body walls Il, I2 and I3 and the flat surface of the cover 23 is disposed ush with the top surfaces of said walls II, I2 and I3 and constitutes with them the top surface of the vanity box. This particular intertting of the cover 23 into the body I0 serves to dispose the heavy and more substantial walls of the body on the outside of the box for added strength and further, displays a greater portion of body surface than is otherwise available for the many delicate hues obtainable with plastics that are not economically possible with metal surfaces.

A glass mirror 26 is disposed within the hollow portion of the cover, and retained therein by any suitable means. The rear end of the cover 23 extends beyond the rear edges of the depending sidewalls 25, into a curved portion 21 to correspond with the rear curved surface of.

.formed at the rear edge of the compartment shell I6.

The body I0 Ahas numerous ledges extending inwardly from'the upstanding walls II, I2 and I3 for the purpose of supporting the compartment shell I6 in assembled position. Specifically there are two spaced front 1edges3I,v 3I, two longitudinal ledges 32, 32 and a single longitudinal rear ledge 33, the latter defining the upper surface of the rear wall I4 of the body I0. The hinge complete, comprising the. barrels 28, 28 and 29 and pin 30, is adapted when assembled to the body I0, to fit into a longitudinal groove 34 provided in the upper surface of the rear ledge 33 of the box adjacent the rear edge, and this groove as best shownV in Fig. 8, merges into a slightly raised longitudinal portion 35 which acts as a stop for the cover 23 when in its completely opened position. This stop position of the cover V23 disposes the mirror at a plane most convenient to be viewed by the user, as illustrated in dotted outline of Fig. 3.

As pointed out in the objects of the invention, one of the principal features of this box is vthe snap locking attachment of the compartment shell I6 to the body I0 which is attained by the following means:

Adjacent the front ledges 3I, 3I are a pair of arcuate tapered recesses 36, 36 having their bases on a plane common with said front ledges 3|; 3|. These recesses are best shown in Figs. 4 and 6.

Extending inwardly from the vv erti'cal wall of the rear ledge 33 are a pair of projections 31 and 38, the first being somewhat longer than the latter so as to reach into the vicinity of the rouge well I8 which is somewhat smaller than the powder well I1 for reasons as will appear later. Into the front faces of these projections 31 and 38 are also cut arcuate recesses 39 and 40 similar to the recesses 36, 36 in the opposite facevof the compartment wall, but having theirtapered surface diametrically opposite those of the recesses 36,-

36. The front edge of the compartment shell I6 is provided with a pair of spaced projecting lugs 4I, 4I which are adapted to aline with and en' gage within the recesses 36, 36, and are inserted in said recesses 36, 36 as shown in Fig. 4 as the first step in the assembly of the compartment shell I6 into the body I0.

Formed in the rear Walls of the powder vand rouge wells I1 and I8, are a pair of outwardly formed rounding nubs 42 and 43 which engage re'- spectively in recesses 39 and 40 of the projections 3'I and 38. These nubs, however, during the assembly operation are caused to cam inwardly over inclined bevelled faces 44 and 45, formed in the front walls of the projections 31 and 38 iml mediately above the recesses 39 and 40.

The hinge barrels 28, 28 arel faces of the front wall II as a stop forthe button in its outward travel. The detent catch 41 has a relatively long spring 'bar portion 50 which initially is formed into a bowed shape, and when assembled, as best shown in Fig. 5, the bowed portion Vassumes a straight position by having its .intermediate part-engage the inner edge .of the push button 46 and its opposite ends caught within a pair of recesses 6I, 5I formed in the adjacent ends of the front ledges 3|, 3|. This reexing of the bar 50 increases con- Y siderably'the inherent tension of the spring catch -41 and exerts a constant outward pressure on the push button element 46. Projecting upwardly thru a slot 52 in the front edge of the compartment shell I6 isa tongue 53 terminating in a semi-circular catch portion 54 which engages in a slot 55 provided in the front wall of the cover. The fact that the thumb piece is not perma vnently attached to the spring detent catch -41,

chamber and slide thereover.

The cover 23 being designed to lie'in'a plane common with the upper surface of the body I0, necessitates that the cover 23 shall upon the release of the spring catch'41 be raised a distance suilicient to allow room to permit the operator to insert a thumb or finger therebeneath and complete the opening of the cover. 'I'his means is' provided by a spring mechanism disposed in asocket 51, formed in an intermediate projection 58 extending inwardly from the rear ledge 33 and f operated adjacent the hinging connection be'- tween the cover 23, and body I0. Thisspring mechanism comprises essentially, a cylindrical plunger 59 having a. rounded nose end 60 pro-k t jecting upwardly through an opening 6I in the surface of the compartment shell I6. 'I'he rounded nose end 60 is adapted to engage against the adjacent face of the glass mirror 26 within the cover 23. The plunger 59 is urged upwardly at all Y times by a helical spring 62 confinedV Within the l socket 51, and the cylindrical plunger 59 has an intermediate circumferential flange 63 that engages against the inner `wall of the compartment shell I6 immediately surrounding theA opening 6I, as a stop. When the spring catch is released, the cover 23 will be opened substantially to the position as shown in Fig. 2, lby the above spring operated mechanism and it will then be easy to insert a thumb or finger underneath the front edge of the cover and open it to its full position as rep-4 resented by dotted outline in Fig. 3.

It is to be understood that when the compartment shell I6 is assembled into'the body by snap locking engagement as heretofore described, the

hinging cover 23 is already attachedthereto, and with the push button 46 and spring catch 41 and the cover spring operated mechanism already assembled in their respective position within the body III. n y l While the form of invention herein described embraces the preferred embodiment of the same, it is to be understood that theconstruction may be varied as to. mechanical detail, Without departing from the spirit of invention and the scope of what is claimed.

Ilk

What is claimed:

1. In a vanity box, a body made of a molded product having a hollow compartment, ledges extending inwardly from the front and rear walls of said compartment, a container shell having a flange resting on said ledges, a cover hinged to said ange for closing said hollow compartment, said front Wall having one or more recesses formed therein with the base of the recess on a plane common with said front ledges. projections formed on the front edge of said flange for engagement in said one or more recesses, said rear wall having one or more recesses formed therein below the top surface of said rear ledge, and lug means projecting from the rear wall of said container shell below the flange, said container shell lug constructions and said body wall recesses being designed to permit the front lugs to be slipped into the front complementary recesses and the rear lugs to be snap locked into the rear complementary recesses for assembly purposes without subsequent assembly-forming operations.

2. In a vanity box based on claim 1 wherein bevelled or cam surfaces are provided on the rear ledge immediately above said rear recesses to facilitate guiding the rear lugs into their respective recesses.

3. In a vanity box comprising a rectangular body made of a molded product having front and side walls extended the full height of the box and a rear wall extended substantially one-half the height of the box and defining a compartment, ledges extending inwardly from the front wall of said compartment on a plane common with the top surface of said rear wall, said front wall having recesses formed therein with the base of the recesses on a plane common with said front ledges, recesses formed also in the rear wall of said compartment below the top plane thereof, a powder well container shell having a peripheral ange resting on said ledges and the top surface of said rear wall, projections extended from the front edge of said ange for slip engagement into said front recesses and nub-like lugs formed from the rear Walls of the container shell Well for snap locking engagement yinto said rear recesses, the rear portion of said flange extending across the top plane of said rear wall and terminating in hinge barrels at the rear edge of the body, and a cover member closing within the front and side Walls of said body and hinged to said flange barreis.

WILLIS H. MACHIN.

REN L. E. RUTER. ORION L. HOLIHAN. 

